Word: hassan
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...last winter Morocco's King Hassan II and his trusted lieutenant, General Mohammed Oufkir, were in the seaside resort of Agadir, discussing an official visit by Libya's Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to nearby Mauritania. To the King's astonishment, Oufkir suddenly proposed that the Moroccan air force be used to assassinate Gaddafi, who had never made any secret of his antipathy toward Hassan. "If only we could find out Gaddafi's flight plan," asked Oufkir, "what would you think of sending an F-5 to smash into him in the middle of the desert...
...Oufkir, are you mad?" replied Hassan. "Even supposing we knew his flight plan, his altitude, his route and we hit him, you must realize that there would be an inquiry. They would find traces of bullets and rockets. In this area only Morocco has F-5s. Can you imagine the international scandal? Piracy in midair against a chief of state?" Then, to put the matter firmly out of hand, the King added: "Oufkir, I absolutely forbid this business...
...force pilots obligingly escorted the plane down to the airfield, where it landed safely with two of its three engines out of action. Calmly, the King reviewed the honor guard, chatted with Cabinet ministers and waiting foreign diplomats. Also waiting was Hassan's Defense Minister, General Mohammed Oufkir, 52. Ruthless, his eyes always hidden by dark glasses, Oufkir for more than a decade had been considered the strongest prop of the Moroccan monarchy. He gained international notoriety in 1965 for his role in the Paris kidnaping and presumed murder of the Moroccan Leftist Mehdi Ben Barka; a French court...
...after the King, with three of his four children, had sped away to his summer palace in a small black Renault-16, a Moroccan air force jet made four passes at the field, shooting up cars, scattering the honor guard, killing eight people and wounding 47. But once again, Hassan had escaped totally unscathed...
...unsuccessful coup underscores the growing unpopularity of Hassan's regime. The King's appearance on movie screens evokes catcalls and gibes. Students brazenly parade donkeys labeled "King Hassan" through the streets. Charges abound of corruption in high places, authoritarianism and nepotism favoring an Arab elite in a predominantly Berber community. The military, which holds the only organized power in a country where factionalism among rival parties and labor unions has dissipated the political opposition, is demonstrably coup-happy. After the even bloodier attempt on his life last year, Hassan moved to initiate reforms. Obviously, he has not moved...